I came across a podcast given by Social Media Happy Hour with an interview with Todd Martin, author of the book, The Invisible Sale. I thought so much of the interview, I decided to buy the book. So, as I am in the middle of reading the book, I also decided it would be a great topic to blog about since it encompasses may of the beliefs we have here at the LTR Digital Group.
Whether you are in a B2B or B2C environment, lead generation is probably one of your biggest challenges. In fact, recent studies show that 60% of companies in a survey put lead generation at the top of their list of challenges.
As Todd discusses in his book, today’s buyers are very digitally oriented and savvy. They do much of their research on a brand, product or company “behind the scenes”. They search for reviews, product/service information and recommendations from social networks via the internet. They read about it in blogs and look for first-hand recommendations without ever having reached out to the company for information. They do all this long before they reach out to your company to let you know that your company has a chance to earn their business.
There are ways and methods to court this invisible buyer so you can help move the relationship you have with this invisible buyer from top-of-mind awareness, to top-of-mind preference. And, you can do all of this without cold calling, or paid advertising.
Just think about how you do your own research in your personal world. I know that when I am looking for a product or service to solve a personal need/problem, I jump on Google and start my research. I use social networks, and first hand recommendations. Then, I narrow it to a few companies that can provide me with what I need, and then give them a chance to earn my business, and more importantly, my dollars.
Now, I am by no means against a tradition outbound approach to selling. Those techniques all have their place in the selling process. But, if your company is not embracing an inbound marketing selling approach, you will be missing out.
More to come on this topic in future blogs….stay tuned!
Feel free to contact me at our office if you have any questions.
